Shloka 10
अवधूतेश्वरलीला (Avadhūteśvara-līlā) — Śiva Tests Indra’s Pride on the Way to Kailāsa
नन्दीश्वर उवाच । शक्रेणेत्थं स पृष्टश्च किंचिन्नोवाच पूरुषः । लीलागृहीतदेहस्स शङ्करो मदहा प्रभुः
nandīśvara uvāca | śakreṇetthaṃ sa pṛṣṭaśca kiṃcinnovāca pūruṣaḥ | līlāgṛhītadehassa śaṅkaro madahā prabhuḥ
Nandīśvara said: Thus questioned by Śakra (Indra), that Person did not speak at all. He was Lord Śaṅkara, the sovereign who destroys pride, who had assumed a body only as līlā—divine play.
Nandishvara (Nandi)
Tattva Level: pati
Shiva Form: Mahādeva
Role: teaching
FAQs
It teaches that Shiva, the Supreme Pati (Lord), may remain silent and concealed, yet His presence dissolves ego (mada). Spiritual maturity is shown through humility before the Lord’s inscrutable līlā.
Shiva is portrayed as taking a manifest form by līlā (Saguna expression) while remaining beyond ordinary grasp. This mirrors how devotees approach the transcendent through accessible forms such as the Linga and divine appearances in Purāṇic stories.
A practical takeaway is ego-reducing japa of the Panchākṣarī—“Om Namaḥ Śivāya”—with a mood of silence, surrender, and inner humility; this aligns with Shiva as madahā, the remover of pride.